Bratfest at Tiffany's Read Free Page B

hair.
    “Who cares about your diet?” Alicia whined. “I want to hear about Ilana.”
    “That’s why I need your dad to find a loophole in this ah-nnoying agreement. If he does, I’ll open like an all-night diner.”
    “Done, done, and done.” Alicia jammed the documents in her tan leather Marc Jacobs hobo. Massie was relieved to see that between her purse and her black RL cap-sleeved blouse, Alicia still had
some
taste left.
    But someone had obviously gotten to Kristen. Her signature sporty-chic Puma style was out: Roxy Girl was in. She was wearing a pink-and-red striped romper with red platform Havaiana flip-flops, and carrying a canvas tote with a photo of a sun-soaked surfer careening down a sapphire-colored wave. Do-able in the O.C.? Maybe. But at OCD? Not a chance.
    “Gawd, Kristen, you spent the summer tutoring. How did this happen?” Massie paused. “Unless that sac is vintage Chloé. Ehmagawd, it
is
, isn’t it?”
    “Nope. It’s H&M. Isn’t it cool?” She admired the photo.
    A soft breeze rustled the leaves overhead.
    “If I was stuck here all summer while you guys were traveling the world, I’d snap and go to H&M too,” Dylan tried.
    “Point.” Alicia lifted her index finger, showing off a stack of thin silver braided rings.
    “
Snapping
,” Massie air-quoted, “is getting pierced at Spencer Gifts. Going full-on surfer girl is an identity crisis. And buying a cheap canvas bag at H&M is a major cry for help.”
    “I’m fine, okay?” Kristen assured them. “I hung out with the Baxters this summer and—”
    “You mean that surf teacher who was going to run the wave pool at Briarwood?” asked Massie. “The one with that hawt son named Dude?”
    “
Dune
.” Kristen ripped out a chunk of grass and whipped it at her.
    The girls cracked up, secretly giggle-searching the campus again.
    Kristen smiled. “And Dune and I became friends and he gave me—”
    “You don’t have to make up stories so we think you had a fun summer.” Alicia put her arm around Kristen’s sunburned shoulders. “We love you no matter what.”
    “I’m nawt making up stories. I swear.”
    Rrrrrrrrriiiinnnnggggggg!
    The bell sounded across the lawn and sent everyone running up the stone steps to the main entrance. The girls grunted as they took turns pulling each other up to stand.
    “Wait, where’s everyone going?” Massie looked up at them, just as a white puffy cloud blocked the sun, casting a chilly shadow across the frenzied campus.
    Kristen pointed to the sprawling stone building. “The bell just—”
    “Puh-lease.” Massie motioned for them to sit back down beside her.
    “What about the welcome-back breakfast?” Dylan pulled the stick out from her hair, letting it fall to her hips.
    “What about your diet?” Alicia countered.
    “What about coughing up the cash to pay for the rest of those boots?”
    Massie giggled. She had missed their playful put-downs.
    “What are we waiting for?” Claire asked. “What about getting to our table and—”
    “We need to make an entrance, like we always do. If we file in with the masses, we’ll be part of the audience. But if we go in late …”
    “… we’ll steal the show.” Alicia re-puffed her purse and sat. Dylan, Kristen, and Claire immediately followed.
    “Ex-
actly
.” Massie grinned like a proud teacher.
    “Besides, I have something for you.” She unzipped her bowler bag and pulled out five robin’s egg blue Tiffany & Co. boxes. Each was tied with a white satin bow.
    They gasped.
    Suddenly, the campus was remarkably empty and silent. There was only the sound of a few chirping birds and the squeak of the school bus hiss-parking in the back lot. But Massie could have sworn she heard the thumping heartbeats of her friends as they stared excitedly at the little boxes on her lap. She silently counted to ten to heighten the drama—and then began to explain.
    “From this moment awn, ‘BFF’ will have a new meaning.”
    They exchanged confused